For Letting Me Go
by Cahhsee
Summary: Living a double life, the Joker's Daughter is high school student, Roxanne OC, and heist mastermind, Ace. She does whatever she can to make her parents happy, but when lives cross paths, which will she chose? Doing what's right or what she was meant for.
1. Introduction

What drives a man insane? There are many answers to that question. Doctors and experts believe that most psychopaths become 'crazy' because something traumatic happening in their lives. Having them sit on a couch and talk about their feeling is a form of treatment that is alleged to work. Criminals and psychopaths are like onions. You have to pull them back layer by layer in order to get to the center. But not if you use a knife.

The famous Batman, who is often seen at the also famous Arkham Asylum, believes that any man, woman, or child is either corrupted or influenced by his or her actions, circumstances, and events as their life goes on. Every person goes through hardships and barriers in the course of life. That's just how life is. And life is what you make it.

One person's experience may be thought of as an excuse to someone else. Most known cases of people losing their mind, began when that person was a child. At such a young age, they aren't sure what is happening to them. If something bad happens, they think that's just the way it is. When a parent would abuse their own child, most people aren't sure why. They would most likely just try to ignore it so they don't get involved. The child could be traumatized just from that very moment. And nobody steps in to stop it. How do you think that poor child would feel? Abused? Or just punished because they did something wrong?

I was fortunate enough not to have that happen to me. However, that does not mean that I haven't gone through things that any normal person would have crumbled beneath. I was one of the strong ones. Or so I've heard anyway. My father had blamed himself for the whole thing, but also repressed his memories of the events. Either to protect himself or myself I'm not entirely sure. But I was able to get a story together combining of what he told me and the news media. Almost twenty years ago, he was a chemical engineer at a plant called Ace Chemicals in Gotham City, New York. His name was Jack Nappier back then but you wouldn't recognize him by that name. Jack was considered a misunderstood genius. Working for Ace Chemicals, he enjoyed taking chances and doing what he wanted to do. His employers would have fired him but he was brilliant at what he did. Jack was also known to be somewhat of a loner. No one really noticed that he had a family at home to provide for. He had a loving wife whose name was unknown to me for quite some time. My dad claimed he didn't remember her name, but I believe it was all a part of repressing memories. With the help of newspapers, I was able to conclude that her name was Jeannie. They also had a daughter who was born by the name Cherie.

One day, Jack was all of sudden convinced that being a chemical engineer was not what he wanted to do with his life. So he quit his job at the chemical plant and began pursue his lifelong dream of being a comedian. However, unknown to him, he may have been a chemical genius but he was nowhere near comedic genius. He would stand up on stage and barely get more than a chuckle. He eventually started to realize that there was a dramatic drop in his pay checks. Getting paid to be a comedian is hard when you're not that funny. Having no money was no way to support a growing family. He became desperate and got in deep with the mob.

Two men came looking for Jack in need of his help. Right next to the Ace Chemicals factory, there was a practical jokes shop that was owned by a guy that owed the mob a lot of money and drugs. He was known for keeping his supply in the basement of his shop. For some reason, the men believed the safest way into the shop was from inside the factory. They needed Jack to help them around the factory and getting through security. The security at the factory was extremely tight. They had seen many thieves in the factory before. And Jack found out, this wasn't their first attempt to get into the factory.

They gave Jack the identity of the Red Hood and made him the leader of the whole operation. Jack began feeling under pressure and his conscious was making think about not going through with the plan. His wife was also getting suspicious of his connection with the mobsters. She had noticed him sneaking out at night and not going to work as often as he should. He admitted that he was trying new things to bring more money into the household. Jeannie did not believe that the mob was the only way out. For the safety of himself and the family, she urged him to get out of it while he still could.

Unknown to Jack and Jeannie, the two men and the entire mob were aware of his family. They knew Jack had a wife but the fact that he had a child was more of a myth. They weren't entirely sure how to approach the situation. They began to suspect that Jack was going to back down from the plan. They decided to pay his wife a visit. They thought Jack wouldn't back down from the plan if he felt that his family was in danger. But something had happened that they didn't expect. His wife had fought back. She had Cherie hide and she fought against the guys that broke into the house. Cherie heard one gun shot, footsteps in a run, then a door slam. She quickly called the police and sat in the closet waiting for the police to arrive. I was three years old then. And that was the time when my name was Cherie. The police said that the mob was after me now. So my name had to be changed to protect my identity. That was also the first time I ever came face to face with Batman. Back then, Batman wasn't a much liked vigilante. The police and the citizens of Gotham City would have rather he leave the crime alone.

While the police were investigating the crime scene, I was outside sitting in the back of a SUV owned by the police. I was somewhat by myself. The only officer around me was checking the windows and doors for any forced entry. Then Batman all of a sudden showed up right next to me. I wasn't frightened and he had asked for my help.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Cherie." I said really quiet. I was afraid that some of the other officers were going to hear us talking.

"You're very brave. I heard about what happened in there. An experience like that probably would have really scared someone your age."

His voice was really deep and harsh. Now as I remember it, he may have been doing that on purpose.

"Are you here to help us?" I asked him.

"Yes. I heard that the mob was involved in this murder. I actually need your help with this one."

"What do you need me for?"

"I need to know if you heard them talking about anything. Anything that could help me catch them."

I actually remembered them say something about Ace Chemicals and something about the Red Hood. I wasn't sure what it was at the time but I told Batman everything that I knew. He thanked me and then told me that I was safe. Then he vanished into thin air. I had really believed that he was there to help me and I think he really was. I'm sure he didn't mean to make things worse.

Perhaps it was my fault that my father ended up getting caught. My father didn't back down on the job because he knew that he still had me to take care of. In that moment I became his only reason for living and he wasn't going to disappoint me. But I still wonder if all the consequences were worth it. There was the change in my life along with the dad's life. Even a change in his face. My father grieved a great amount before the heist. He had planned on killing the men himself at the factory during the heist. Then tell the police that he was a 'mole' in the mob's scheme.

They had my dad put on the red ski mask and they called him Red Hood throughout the heist. He didn't know that the red mask was actually to make him look like the boss. The original plan the two men had was that the police was going to go after my dad first because of him being the 'boss'. That didn't go as planned. The security immediately knew what they were up and called the police. A shoot out occurs and the two men are shot dead before he could even get to them. Then Batman came into the picture. From the several case notes, it seems that Batman had scared Jack and he fell over the rail of the catwalk. It was good that there was something there to catch his fall but what caught his fall had changed his life forever. He fell into a huge tank of some kind of chemicals. No one was really sure what he had fallen into and they thought he was dead from the moment he hit the liquid. But he was very much alive and changing. The police or security didn't even go into the tank to try and find him. But the next day when they finally did, there was no body to be found. Well soon after the police left the scene the night before, he emerged from the tank and came to find me. When he found me, I was utterly surprised and I wasn't sure that he had seen himself. I pulled him to a mirror and he was just as surprised as I was. He didn't recognize himself. His skin was bleached white, black hair was now green, and his lips became a bright red. He looked as if he was wearing lipstick and it was strange to see his face looking so different. The weirdest thing was persistent smile that stayed on his face. He almost looked like a clown. For most people, especially children my age at the time would have probably been afraid. But I knew that under that strange face was my dad and I wasn't going to disown him and he wasn't going to abandon me. So ever since that day, we were on the run. I went into hiding most of the time. I didn't mind it much and I learned how to take care of myself. Then after a year or so, he put on the purple suite. From that moment, Jack Nappier was dead. And the Joker was born.

Theoretically, anyone could really be driven insane. Whether it's money, fame, or even fear. He discovered that he may not have been funny, but he was good at causing pain and performing cruel jokes. So he started his reign of crime in Gotham City and his biggest obsession has always been Batman. So what drove him insane?

Over the years, I never felt mistreated or abused in anyway. It's hard for most people to understand that he actually cares about me and would do anything for me. I'm the only person that is not subject to his cruel jokes and crazy antics. I was his daughter. He loved me and I loved him. I was the only person he ever trusted. No matter how many times he was deemed insane and unsafe in public, I never gave up on him. So no matter what, I was always there to help him. Even when I was young, I was helpful by just hiding and not making my presence known. But there was only one place where I wasn't about to help him. Arkham Asylum.

Every time he was on trial, he was deemed insane and sent to Arkham Asylum. Despite all the crimes he had committed, he was always found not guilty by reason of insanity. He was usually able to escape from the asylum with no problem but every time he did, they heightened the security. He decided that he needed to find someone in the asylum that he could trust to help him escape. Then he met Harleen Quinzel.

Dr. Harleen Quinzel was in the process of getting her medical license and was interning at Arkham Asylum when she met the Joker. She was dumbstruck from the moment she met him. I'm not entirely sure how he did it, but within no time, Harleen had become completely mesmerized. Believe it or not, the Joker is quite the charmer and put his full charm on her. She soon falls hopelessly in love with him and becomes his accomplice inside Arkham Asylum. He urges her to stay at the asylum and not to act suspicious in anyway. It was hard for her to keep her new found love a secret but the newly invented Harley Quinn was able to keep her cool.

I knew about Harley from the start because it was strange to see him home so quickly. All he said was 'Baby cakes, I think I may have a new girlfriend.' And he sounded so happy about it and so I was extremely happy. It meant that now he has another person he can trust. And that someone just so happened to be in the place he's sent most. So I had no problem with her at all and I believed that she could totally end up helping us in the long run. Little did I know that she would actually end up being the only mother I ever knew.

When I was six years old, I decided I wanted to go to school. I remember seeing kids my age getting on the school bus and I wished I could join them. I didn't have any friends at that time because I didn't have much contact with other people. With me being so young, I didn't trust many people. I was curious and I wanted to see what it was like. Of course, Joker tried to do whatever he could for me. But school was something that he wasn't sure he could do. Until he got put back into Arkham by Batman. Harley didn't know that I had existed but she was extremely excited when she found out. Joker told her that he needed her help to take care of someone that was very special to him. He asked her to leave the asylum and try interning at Gotham General. She did just that and she met me for the first time.

She did whatever she could to get me into school. They took advantage of the witness protection program I was promised and used it to change my name. Harley became registered as my legal guardian and even introduced me as her daughter when we went to the school for the first time. Harley informed them that I was under the witness protection program and was not allowed to give them my real name. The counselor was too intrigued by the fact that I still wanted to go to school, wanted dead by the mob and all. She thought I was home schooled before and just had me tested to see what grade I'd be suitable for. Being only seven years old, I tested into the 4th grade with a 6th grade reading level. Harley was pretty impressed too considered that I had never been to school in my life. But we decided that I would just start in 2nd grade like I'm supposed to so I could graduate with my same age.

So I did end up with a mother. She was the only mother I ever knew. She stayed at Gotham General interning and getting her medical license until I was seventeen. I didn't go to the hospital or the doctors very often thanks to her as well. She became friends with another villain known as Poison Ivy and she became my physician for most of my life. She knew how to cure any sickness with her herbs and plants she grew in her garden and she was very helpful to us.

Ever since I was sixteen years old, I became the Joker planner. I helped him come up with schemes and plan to rob places or just take control over a certain area. Taking control over a certain area became my favorite thing to do and I got better at it over the years. However, I wasn't always there with him making sure that the plans got executed like they were supposed to so sometimes they did fail. Then there was the big failure that drove Harley over the edge.

Harley had gone back working at Arkham Asylum for a little while. She hadn't been working there long when the Joker came into the asylum all beat up. Batman had nearly pulverized him and beaten him to a pulp. Harley was so upset that she decided to drop her medical license and her whole life to become the Joker's sidekick. She made a jester outfit for herself, helped the Joker escape one last time, and started their reign as the clown couple from hell. Luckily for me, the police and my school weren't able to put together that Dr. Harleen Quinzel, who had signed as my parent and emergency contact, was also Harley Quinn. She still came to a lot of my school events and meetings. She would just put on a wig and a different outfit and no one noticed who she really was.

Growing up wasn't easy in the Joker household, but it wasn't a bad childhood either. I still got a lot of attention and I was called beautiful every day. As the years went by, it seemed as if I started to look more and more like Harley. Friends at school would tell me that I look just like my mom. Which is ironic because she isn't my mother biologically. But the Joker was happy that I didn't look like my biological mother. I think it was because it would just bring too many memories to the surface. I think he's almost completely forgotten his life up until he got dunked in the chemicals. He would show me a picture of his previous self and tell me I looked just like him. I have his jet, black hair and his emerald green eyes. Other than that, I'm supposedly a perfect mix of my mother and father. I'm still upset that I don't have a picture of her.

Most people believe that my father was the biggest and probably the most famous, criminal ever to hit Gotham City streets. They also think he's the most cruel. Even to this day, when criminals want to scare each other, they tell Joker stories. That's their side of the story. The part that they see when he's out and about doing bad things. To me he was my dad and even though he was cruel, I still ended up okay. So I'll let you decide. Am I as crazy as he is, or am I just a girl helping her family? My name is Roxanne Stacey Quince. I am nineteen years old and I am a die-hard criminal.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Time to Disappear

June 13, 2011

Throughout the course of someone's life, there is always something that they look forward to. Whether it's finally moving out of the house, going off to college, or getting married, having kids and a good life to go along with it. That last one is usually the most common I believe. For my best friend, Jess, it was definitely going off to college. She was a dancer and she was going to be doing something that she had always wanted to do. She had been asked to audition at the School of American Ballet. She was one of the very few that ever get that far. However, for me, what I was looking forward to was graduating high school. Not because I was the first of my family or anything along those lines. It was because I knew that once I graduated, I would be joining my parents in their line of work. It would be my time to disappear. I will leave the place I once loved so dearly and replace it with a world that I knew all too well.

The majority of my friends were graduating with me on that day. I urged them all to come to graduation. I tried to pull off the 'rite of passage' crap but truthfully, I knew it was going to be the last day to see them. I wanted it all to be special and it truly was. Harley was the only one of my family there. Whereas most people's families took up all the bleachers like a herd of wildebeests. I know my father wanted to be there but due to his 'condition' he didn't want to be there to cause any commotion.

I watched as all my friends walked across the stage and I behaved when Jess walked across. I was going to yell and cheer but I controlled myself. She was always so graceful when she walked and she was even more so when she's excited. And Harley, who was supposed to be keeping calm, went crazy when I walked across the stage. She nearly dropped the video camera she was holding. But overall, it truly was an experience. Maybe not a rite of passage, but definitely something worth experiencing. Being in spotlight for something millions of people before me have done. But I know that there are even millions more who are unable to make it that far.

My excitement was being with my friends afterward. As we all exited the arena, we awaited our homeroom teachers with our diplomas. After all the diplomas were given out, we had the pleasure of trying to find everybody. All the graduates and the crowd were all together in one big swarm. It was just as hard to get through the mob as it was to find somebody. But finally after a lot of pushing and shoving, I finally made it out of the crowd. I never really noticed how large the graduating class was until that moment. All the graduates were beginning to joining in their own little groups and cliques. We've got the Goths and punks. The infamous Plastics. And of course, the jocks. Most were together as couples in the classic football player/cheerleader combo. There was only one person that seemed to stand out in the group. He was the only one without a girlfriend and I was guessing he was with them only because it was graduation. We had actually been best friends before he started hanging out with those goons. They didn't like me very much for being different. And they knew I could very easily kick any of their asses up and down the football field. Tim Drake was the only that stood up for me during those times of hatred.

I knew of him ever since I got into school but he usually kept to himself. We first met in 8th grade. He didn't have very many friends but he still had a few acquaintances in class. He would throw the football around during recess or sit around and write things down in his notebook. He was a strange boy. He was smart, I'll give him that, but he wasn't like any of the other kids. He never was to begin with. I knew his parents worked very closely with the circus and with the famous Flying Graysons. He loved to show off his moves and acrobatics that he learned from Dick Grayson, the son of the John and Mary Grayson and also one of the Flying Graysons. Then he missed a few days of school. And when he came back, all the excitement, all the confidence had left him.

I was sitting at home one day watching the news when I realized what had happened to Tim. A villain named Obeah Man had kidnapped a couple by the name of Jack and Janet Drake. I recognized the name. They were on a trip in the Caribbean when they were taken. He had planned to sacrifice them but Batman came to their rescue. He took out Obeah Man but he was too late to save them. They drank the poison before Batman could stop them. Janet was dead but Jack was left in a coma with paralysis. Upon hearing that, my dad, Joker, had come up behind me and turned the TV off. 'No need to humor other villain's efforts, baby cakes,' He said. To me, that wasn't humoring. It was the beginning of a pure hatred. I saw that dark shadow come for Tim. And I knew he wouldn't be able to face it alone.

Upon coming back to school, everyone had heard about what happened. I had assumed that the media being what it is, had tried to make the situation seem worse than it actually was. But this time, they actually told the truth. They couldn't make it any worse. Tim had always been somewhat of a loner but this time it was different. He stayed out of the way on purpose. He did a lot more writing then tossing the football. He didn't cry though. He just seemed to sit around and stare at the wall. No one had any want to help or reach out for him. Tim had become a disease to everyone. Other classmates didn't know what to say or do so they just tried their best to leave it alone. He seemed to draw himself into seclusion more and more every day. There was nothing more a thirteen year old boy could do but basically shut down.

One day, a student in our class had decided to be a perfect asshole. He was making fun of Tim's parents. Calling them circus freaks and saying that was reason for their fate. All the anger Tim left built up inside of him got released that day. And he released it all over that kid's face. Tim just got up, walked to back of the room, and punched that kid in the face, knocking him out of his chair. The teacher called security and had some of the other students take the injured to the nurse. She had Tim sit out in the hall to wait for security. He walked out quietly without saying a word. I couldn't help but feel that that wasn't going to help him. He was going to fully shut down if no one was going to help him. And no one else was volunteering. After a few minutes, I asked to go to the restroom.

I walked out of the classroom and found Tim nearby bawling his eyes out. He was sitting on the floor with his back to the wall and his knees to his chest. Once he noticed me, he quickly put his head down on his knees to try and hide his crying. I walked over to him and sat down next to him. Once he calmed himself down, he looked up at me.

"Who are you?" he said to me. His eyes were still bloodshot red. It was easy to see that he was holding those tears back for a long time.

"My name is Roxanne. But you can call me Roxi. What's your name?" I said back.

"Tim. Tim Drake." I found it funny how he said his name like that. His name rolled off the tongue just as easy as James Bond.

"Why are you crying Tim?"

"Because of what happened. I know you know what happened. It was all over the news. And everyone seems to think it's a joke. And the only one that cares besides me is Batman" He had almost started to cry again and he laid his head back on his knees. I was surprised how he mentioned Batman like that. I wondered if he came to Tim's aid like he did for me. I started to rub his shoulder gently.

"Hey. You shouldn't care about what those people think. They don't know anything about what you're going through. But I understand what you're going through Tim. My mother died right in front of me and I couldn't change what happened. And Batman helped me too. He was able to catch my mother's killers. And for that, I am forever grateful to him." He looked up at me with gloomy eyes.

"Is that true?"

"Yes it is. And there is something that you always have to remember." He had started to relax now. His knees fell from his chest and he stretched his legs out.

"What is it?"

"Your parents aren't truly dead. They will always be alive in you. Their spirits reside in you." He smiled at me with the smile that I soon came to love. He laid his head on my shoulder and ever since then, a new bond had formed. We were best friends ever since that day.

Soon afterwards, we were hanging out often. He still kept to himself some, but not as much as before. Sometimes he would get a call from someone and have to leave right away without reason. This didn't bother me because I did that often too. Most of the time we would hang out somewhere public or at his grandparents' house. They never said anything about him actually living with them but that was what I suspected. They were his closed relatives that still lived in Gotham City (as far as I knew). His grandparents were lovely and very kind to me. They were happy that Tim had found a good friend to trust and help with school. With high school starting next year, our grades needed to be good. That way we could start off great for freshman year. But one thing was still haunting Tim in the back of his mind. He had great trust in Batman as I did. But if someone went after his parents, he wasn't sure if someone would be after him next. His grandmother had still noticed that Tim was still having nightmares and going through depressive mood swings. She suggested that Tim find an outlet in high school to help him with his anger and sadness. That outlet just so happened to be football.

From the first day he showed up at tryouts, the coach said he would be the perfect height for a quarterback. The coach was very certainly right. From just tossing the football around at recess, Tim excelled in being the high school quarterback. He started out at JV level, of course. Then by sophomore year, he was in Varsity as the starting quarterback. I unfortunately had missed his first game as JV quarterback because I was kidnapped during freshman year right before the game. Tim went under a great deal of stress those two weeks while I was missing. But once I was found, I didn't unveil anything to the police. I didn't tell them who it was that kidnapped me. I didn't even tell them where I was kept. And the truth is, I couldn't remember anything from what happened. I remember being in a lot of pain and being beaten. However, the reasons for the beaten were nonexistent. As if they showed no intent of letting me go. Yet somehow, I woke up in a hospital bed with Harley yelling at Police Commissioner James Gordon. Batman was there too but he only came to visit at night and kept to the shadows. He urged that I give information to the police but I refused. And thanks to the news media, they made it sound as if I had run away and tried to cover it up with a kidnapping excuse. My relationship with Tim had gotten kind of shady after he heard that on the news. But he still sat by my hospital bed and wept for my survival and the fact that I was okay.

When I came back to school, I was for to a real surprise. Tim had been the hero for the first couple games of the season. For him only being on the JV team, everyone had already started treating him like the star quarterback of the whole school. And that is exactly what he became when sophomore year came rolling in. All the popular kids and the jocks took him under their wing. They told him all the do's and don'ts and became his new best friends. But their most important rule for him during school was that he was not allowed to be seen with me. They all saw me a threat to some sort of operation of theirs and I didn't trust it. They also put ideas into his head about me betraying him. As far as I know he didn't believe them. But it was Tim's job to stand up to them but to their dismay, he did not. He soon wound up with the head cheerleader on his shoulder and it was like he was the king of the world.

We still remained friends through junior year. Tim and his girlfriend were on and off and they fought all the time. She truly was the definition of cheerleader bitch mode. She came over to the house for the first time and yelled at him for living with his grandparents. She claimed she didn't know that his parents had died and that old people creep her out. His grandparents forbade her from ever coming over the house again. But that didn't stop her from laying her wrath upon all of us. We kept hearing about her and it all got worse and worse. There were rumors going around the school that she had cheated on Tim with another one of the football players and that wasn't the worst of it. We didn't understand why he stayed with her. She was bringing him down again. I hadn't seen him so bad since the day I first met him. I slowly took my revenge on her over the course of the next few years but it wasn't anything seriously bad. I tried out for the cheer squad one year and made it. I did it to show that you didn't have to be popular to be a cheerleader. Then I never showed up for practice or anything just to give them hell. And it wasn't me that did the worst thing of all.

After the summer of junior year, everything had changed. Tim was not his usual self. The first day of school he didn't hang out with his usual friends. He didn't hang out with anyone actually. He avoided the crowd of athletes. And when his girlfriend came up to him, he broke up with her right then and there and just walked away. She was more surprised yelling and screaming than anything. But we all, his true close friends, were severely worried for him. But he wouldn't talk to anyone. Not even me. So throughout senior year, he spent it alone as a loner. He still stayed with the football team but did not associate himself with the other players. He was soon denied for a football scholarship because of that.

I hadn't talked to him at all during senior year. It made me upset but mostly made me worry. I was wondering what was going through his head as he decided to release himself from his group of friends. I might not have liked them very much but at least he had somebody with him.

On graduation day, he looked just as perfect as ever. As if high school had just flown by without even realizing it. And truthfully, it really did. I watched him as he started moving around like he was looking for someone. He kept turning around and looking around other groups of people. Then finally, a tall, dark haired man came up to him. He gave him a nice pat on the back and a hug. Whoever he was, he was very handsome. It looked like tall, dark, and handsome had come to pick up tall, blonde, and gorgeous. The only people I didn't see were his grandparents. I had started to wonder where they were. I was carrying around with me my old Polaroid camera. Everyone had gone to digital cameras but I believed that the best pictures could only be taken with a single flash. I may have had to order the film, but at least I could print out the pictures right then and there. So I quickly took a picture of Tim and the mysterious character with him. I usually take pictures of people I have first met or people I wanted to meet. The picture printed out, so I grabbed it and started shaking it to get it to dry. Once the picture dried and I could the contents of the photo, it showed that Tim was staring at me while I took the picture. He may have noticed the flash. I looked up, and he was still staring at me. I was kind of embarrassed at that moment, but at least his friend wasn't with him anymore. I was deep in thought with our entire friendship running through my head and now there he was staring at me. He then raised his right hand and waved. I guess that was how I was saying goodbye. I did the same thing. He then gave me that smile that I loved so dearly, then turned and walked away with the other man. I thought that was going to be the last time I saw him. I put the picture in my camera case and continued looking for Jess.

While I was lost in thought standing in the middle of the courtyard, Jess had finally found me. She lightly bumped me to the side with her hip to try to get me out of dream mode.

"What are you staring at?" She asked. She moved her head closer to mine in an attempt to focus on what I was staring at. I snapped back to reality and turned my head to look at her.

"Nobody. Just lost in thought, that's all." I said.

"I said what not who. Now I know you were staring at somebody." She said back.

She can be such a smart ass sometimes. She gave me a hug and kept going on about how much she's going to miss me and worry about me. I was going to miss her too. She had been my best friend in high school when Tim was going through his athletic selfishness. She had always been there for me and I was very happy to have her as my friend. And her being my friend, she always looked after me and she wasn't happy about my plans for what I was doing with my life.

We started walking around the courtyard. We were trying to look for her parents when she asked that question she had been wondering for a while now.

"Are you sure you really want to stay in Gotham City?" She asked. I thought about this before but I already knew the answer. I wasn't going anywhere for a while.

"Yes. This is where I belong. This city is all I know. I'll go out and travel one day but for now, I'm staying here."

"You know, I might be going to the School of American Ballet, but the main school is in New York City. I won't be going abroad until August. You can always stay with me until then." _Dammit _I thought. She wasn't supposed to be anywhere near New York all summer. This might cause problems.

"It's really okay. I still have my parents and I'll stay with them." I tried to sound as confident as possible. I was usually a pretty good liar but Jess can see through it sometimes. She grabbed my arm to show that she wanted to stop walking and talk.

"What is the real reason you're staying? I know you got accepted to the School of Visual Arts in New York City and you turned that down. You turned down a thirty thousand dollar scholarship! Why?" I saw that she was starting to lose her temper. She was right. It was crazy and unnecessary for me to turn down that scholarship and admittance to that college. I had no good reasons. So I told her the truth.

"It's my dad." I said. I was staying here for my parents but it was mostly my dad. She didn't know that the Joker was my father, of course. But because she had never met him before, she didn't know what to think of him. She calmed down a little bit because she knew how much he meant to me. "He's sick again." That time I lied.

"You know, you sound like you're being drafted in the military." She shook her head and stared at me. She gave me her famous worry look but eventually shook it off. "Fine, fine. Stay here and wallow along with this decrepit city." She had never been one to enjoy Gotham very much. She moved up here for New York City and got Gotham instead. "But, if you're going to stay here, I want you to promise me one thing." She held up one finger in front of her face. She had a way of using her hands in conversation.

"What's that?" I said.

"You have to promise me you won't disappear."

I met Jess when I went back to school after my kidnapping. She found out quite quickly I'm willing to put myself into danger. Over the course of high school, I would miss class all the time without reason and somehow wound up in the hospital with life-threatening injuries. I missed nearly a whole month of school when I was kidnapped. I missed two more weeks sophomore year after getting 'hit by a car'. And I would be pulled out early from school constantly throughout the last two years. And no matter what, Jess was always there to help me. She would record or sometimes video tape entire classes for me. She brought me my homework and tests for each class whenever I was out. Harley and I had our own separate apartment for anytime Jess needed to come over and help me study. I wouldn't have passed high school if it wasn't for Jess. I was also lucky that the principal liked me; otherwise I would have missed too many days to pass any grade. Jess always did her best to make sure I was okay. I didn't allow her to get involved in a lot of things but she still showed how much she cared. I had my own share of secrets that just couldn't be told. But she would be the first one to know, without a doubt, that I was up to something. Even if it was my own disappearance.

"We don't need a replay of the first big time you disappeared," she said. "Poor Timmy was so devastated." I knew what she was talking about. She was talking about that first football game I missed because I was kidnapped. There were still a lot of people that believe I was actually trying to run away. I think she was one of those people. She might be my best friend, but she knows how easily I put myself into trouble.

"Jessica. I told you. I was kidnapped. I was not trying to run away." I tried my best to keep my voice down. "And you'd be the first one to know if I were to disappear again."

That conversation was over. I refused to continue talking about what I was doing with my life. And she didn't need to know about what I was getting myself into. She was staring at me for a little while. Now she was lost in thought. Then I noticed her focus on something behind me.

"Now what are you staring at?" I asked her. Then I knew what she was staring at. I could smell the aroma of Victoria Secret Body Mist coming closer and closer. Without a moment's notice, I was nearly tackled from behind before I could turn around. It took me a second to stand my ground but now she was hanging on my back like I was giving her a piggy back ride. Jess was nearly laughing her ass off at the sight.

"Hey there Harley." I said to her. She finally got off me and spun me around to look at her.

"Hey sweetheart! I'm so proud of you! You've finally graduated high school!" I could hear the true excitement in her voice. She gave me hugs and kisses. Then Jess went up to her.

"Hey, Ms. Quinzel, I was wondering if you were aware of your daughter turning down an amazing scholarship to a fancy art school." Jess said. Here we go again. Now she was trying to see what Harley had to say about it.

"It was completely up to her. She wants to work and just take a year off that is totally fine with me." Harley said back. That was a good answer. However, I never told Harley about the application I turned into that school. She must have been faking. And all of a sudden, the excitement turned into suspicion.

After that, Jess's parents finally found us. We all conversed for a few minutes then we went our separate ways. I gave Jess a hug and said goodbye. I was happy that Jess was going to be away from Gotham forever. The next couple years probably will not be the best of Gotham's history.

I feel, to this very day, getting back in that car was one of the hardest things I've ever done. Leaving that courtyard, leaving my friends to their futures that I wasn't destined to be a part of. Fate had a different road for me to follow. And for now, following Harley back to the car was what I needed to do.

We forced our way out of the crowd and into the parking lot. Once we got out of the crowd, we could feel the warm summer breeze again. It wasn't much of a sunny day but the day still managed to have a warm twinge to it. The parking lot was still full of cars and I just continued to follow Harley. I had no idea what car she drove to the arena. Jess and her parents drove me to the arena because Harley was taking forever to get ready. Harley just continued to smile back at me as if she had a surprise. When we finally reached the car, I figured out why. It was a luxury car. Completely tinted out and packed high with all the bells and whistles. The only problem was that this wasn't her car. It was clearly stolen. She had done plenty of work to try and hide the fact of false ownership but she didn't do much. She just ripped off the vehicle insignia and replaced the license plate with a dealer tag. She tried to make it look like she just hasn't gotten a license plate yet. There was also a child's car seat in the back seat that was clearly not ours. I attempted to make a joke and pointed at it as Harley got in the driver's seat and I sat next to her.

"Is there a little surprise I don't know about?" I laughed. Harley didn't laugh and didn't even look at me when she said, "Don't be a smart ass."

So I just shut up. I figured she was mad at me about something. She threw the camera bag over her head into the back seat and put her seatbelt on.

We pulled out of the parking lot and started heading home. We must have been the first people out of the parking lot. It hadn't looked as if the crowd dispersed much. It was a silent ride home, because I wasn't going to say anything unless Harley did. I wanted her to explain herself and her reasoning for being upset with me. While I waited for her to talk, I just stared out the window and watched the city come alive. I watched the people and cars hurrying to their destinations, I saw people arguing over stupid things, and tourists trying to stalk down a taxi. A lot of the usual things you would see in a busy city. The atmosphere changed once we headed into the outskirts of Gotham. It was the middle of the day but somehow the sky already seemed dark. The part of the city where rats roamed free on the streets and most people ran scared. It was definitely the darker, gloomier side of the city. To the inner city dwellers, it was called the Narrows. But to us, it was called home.

The three of us, Harley, Joker, and I, lived in a renovated warehouse toward the back of the Narrows. It sat on a shallow hill and mixed in with the landscape. The outside makes it look like any normal metal warehouse. Possibly used to store old equipment. But it was actually insolated like any house and it had three stories. The first level was hidden behind the hill. It was used to hold a lot of the stolen cars that we 'borrowed'. We had a drive way that led to the back and a few garage doors would lift up to give entry into the first floor. The only way to open the garage doors was with a key. Once inside the garage, there was a stairway that led up to the second level. The inside started to look like any home once you got to the second floor. Renovated with a living room, dining room, and kitchen. Then Joker had his own office in the far corner. It was also his safe room. The walls were 4 feet wide with solid concrete so any fire or explosion wouldn't get past the walls. Anything in the office would be protected. Then the third floor was all mine. My room took up the whole third floor and every picture I've ever taken with my camera is taped to the wall. Harley pulled around in the driveway and stopped the car in front of the garage doors. I opened the car door and was going to open the garage for her when she stopped me.

"Why did you apply to that art school?" she asked. She continued to look straight forward. I figured that comment about the art school was what was bothering her.

"I just wanted to see if I could get in. I was just humoring myself." I said back.

"Well you shouldn't have," she turned slightly to look at me now. "We gave you a choice and this is the path you chose. Your father and I sacrificed everything for you and now you'll help us. You can't go back on your promise now."

Believe it or not, I actually did have a choice. It surprised me when they asked what I wanted to do. Nothing had altered my decision. I didn't realize she was so worried about me leaving them.

"I'm still going to help you. Nothing has changed my mind." I said back to her with confidence.

"Then do us all a favor and start showing it. We will need you for future plans. Your fight for survival starts now. We know you are strong enough. You have all the weapons you need. So fight."


End file.
